asked the Secretary of State for Social Services (1) whether the cohabitation rule will be applied to the proposed family allowance for the first child of one-parent families in the same manner as it is applied to other social security benefits not available to married women or women cohabiting;(2) whether the Government propose to pay family allowances for the first child to a father living alone with his children; and how the cohabitation rule will be applied to such fathers.

The interim benefit is intended for one-parent families, whether headed by the father or the mother, and since it is confined to such families, will be subject to a cohabitation rule, which will apply equally to parents of either sex.